Whatcha Been Watching?

This is the place where you can conflab about all the other stuff besides videogames
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Seph
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Seph »

Miririn wrote: July 19th, 2021, 10:16 am Unrelated boring "Midsommar" anecdote: none of my IRL love horror films so I always have to go and see them alone. But my fashion aesthetic/general vibe is very... uh... twee? Girly? Not... horror-y? My friend had to ban me from dog and cat rescue websites because I would read all the descriptions and cry? I own a lamp shaped like a hedgehog?? That kind of thing. Twee.

So I remember going to see "Midsommar" alone at a sold out screening in Central London. I sat next to a lad and his girlfriend and he looked at me: in a Cath Kidston Disney collab Jungle Book dress, pink bag with a cat driving a prosecco van (............I accept no judgment), pink glitter phone case, and a big glass of wine. I think the poor guy was genuinely worried I had stumbled into the wrong screening and was meant to be at the chick flick next door, ahaha. But I was there for the boyfriend sacrificing and big hammers!!! And maybe the "Midsommar" vibe itself is very me ;) In that it's about unspeakable horror but all the women are in pretty girly dresses with flowers in their hair!
That's quite the vivid image! But, honestly, based on my one experience of going to Fright Fest I don't think you would have looked out of place at all. I think I looked more out of place with my Napalm Death T-shirt.

I'm with you on your idea of what makes a story frightening. Bad things happening to good people for no reason is a similar one for me. I've never read it as it's hard to get hold of, but I've read a summary of a short story called The Clinic by Alex White. What takes places in that story crushes my soul and makes me more afraid than a million ghosts or zombies jump-scaring their way across grim dark worlds.
Following another recommendation from Jay I just watched The Nightingale (available on Netflix). It was excellent.
Snap! I watched it yesterday after some compulsion, so it might have been Jay mentioning it. I thought it was good and while it was aiming for grim realism, I felt really worn down after the first 30 minutes. What the fuck were they teaching these soldiers if the first thought when seeing a woman is a need to rape? But not since Dead Man's Shoes have I cheered as much to see nasty little pricks get what they deserve.
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JaySevenZero
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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I watched Blood Red Sky on Netflix yesterday and it gets a recommend from me. I won't say anymore other than if you decoide to watch it to go in completely raw, without reading up about it since it's probably the best way to get the most out of the story and where it goes.

Also watched Kingdom: Ashin of the North, a special episode of the fantastic Kingdom the South Korean period horror Netflix series. I love this series and this episode feels like it's clearly setting up the antagonist for any future seasons, although they have yet to announce whether there will be a continuation or not.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Watched the Fear Street trilogy. Loved it. I even listened to the director talk about the film on Mick Garris' podcast, which is recommended. She talks about the music she wanted in the film, and two songs that she just couldn't land. Interesting stuff.

Watched Gunpowder Milkshake. It probably looked better on paper. Karen Gillan is fun to watch, and there are attempts at style, but the film is hampered by a limited budget and indecision on what sort of film it wanted to be.

But it was Citizen Kane compared to Jolt. I think everyone in this film needs to speak to their agents. Kate Beckinsale does her best to bring charm and wit to this juddering trash fire, but even she can't salvage it. The concept is Beckinsale's character suffers extreme rage whenever she sees injustice, which gives her the ability to ignore pain and beat the beejeezus out of anyone. So, of course, she meets with a therapist who has her wear an electric vest that she can activate to 'jolt' her out of killing someone because they farted in an elevator or took up too much space on the subway. Interesting concept that they really do nothing with outside of a few badly staged fight scenes.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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I signed up to Apple TV with the PS5 6 month deal and on a friend’s recommendation watched Ted Lasso.

I started this evening and am now on episode 7! It is incredible. It’s so positive and uplifting...plus it has a bit of football. Sort of like an English Jerry Maguire it terms of the positive it is channeling.

I wish I’d tried it mid lockdown. Such a tonic!!
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Angry_Kurt »

Went to see Old yesterday at the cinema as my first trip back. Despite some annoying characters and slight plot holes I enjoyed it. Horror but not too scary or gory with the exception of one scene. It kept me thoroughly engaged throughout and I really liked the thought provoking reason behind what was happening on the beach. 3.5/5
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Angry_Kurt wrote: July 25th, 2021, 8:08 am Despite some annoying characters and slight plot holes...
M. Night Shyamalan's trademark, then... :lol:
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Seph
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Seph »

Does Bruce Willis turn up at the end and do that bulldog-licking-piss-off-a-nettle face he only seems capable of doing these days?
Marlew
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Marlew »

Been watching quite a few things recently as my wife has broken up for the summer so we've been putting our feet up, cranking the fans and taking it in turns to pick the following:


Raw

A gory but oddly touching French horror about, hmm, appetites. It's set around a veterinary school during Fresher's Week and although it's got a quite a base, sometimes sleazy atmosphere, I found the characters engaging. It also shocked me several times and subverted my expectations more than once.

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Ghostbusters

As brilliant as ever. I picked up the 4K Blu-ray and while it's not a reference disc, it looks great and retains a lovely filmic grain. My wife had never seen it before and she loved the performances, couldn't get over how good the whole cast was. It's full of detail, imagination and affection, a stellar team at the top of their game.

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The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl

A relentlessly creative anime rom-com (in the loosest sense). The art style is like little else I've seen and within the film, it changes from shot to shot depending on the intent of the scene. It's part Pop Art, part sketch book, part MadHouse, part Saul Bass. It really is something special. The plot and characters are equally irreverent and flighty, you never quite put your finger on it before there's some surprise or subversion. It's meta and self-referential but not in a clever clever way, it's more just delightful. It's also really funny and quite tender. I'll watch it again soon. I've also just seen it's on Netflix UK, apparently.

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Endless Summer

A wonderful and innocent 60s documentary about surfing and two particular surfers. In a quest to experience the 'endless summer', they travel around the world surfing in sometimes untouched waters and engaging in some cultural exchange with the locals. It's quite dated in its language and perspective at times but it has a real heart, affection and curiosity for both the sport and the people encountered along the way. A gorgeous Blu-ray release by Second Sight films.

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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Marlew wrote: July 25th, 2021, 9:19 pm The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
I'll watch it again soon. I've also just seen it's on Netflix UK, apparently.
It doesn't appear to be, but I've earmarked it for a watch if I can find a copy streaming anywhere now or in the future - sounds interesting!
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Marlew »

Alex79uk wrote: July 26th, 2021, 9:33 pm
Marlew wrote: July 25th, 2021, 9:19 pm The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
I'll watch it again soon. I've also just seen it's on Netflix UK, apparently.
It doesn't appear to be, but I've earmarked it for a watch if I can find a copy streaming anywhere now or in the future - sounds interesting!
Ah, bugger, sorry about that. Must be Netflix US. I only saw in passing. It's really good. If you see Mind Game around, I believe that's by some of the same people and it's also brilliant. Kind of romantic/erotic but not in a sleazy way. It's just a very expressive and entertaining film that takes you on a wild ride.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Watched a few of Ari Aster's short films over the weekend:

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons was truly horrifying, but not in the usual horror sense, I get the feeling Aster likes to subvert expectations and shock people rather than go for a simple jump scare. Trigger warning going into this one, contains lots of themes of domestic abuse and sexual abuse. Very uncomfortable viewing, but gripping the whole way through and keeps you enthralled for the full 30 minutes.

Beau was only 6 minutes long and it was brilliant. Such a fun piece of directing, starting off at a low rumble of anxiety and discomfort and finishing at full blown chaos and confusion. It was really fun.

Munchausen. A 12 minute long silent film, with a Disney-esque orchestral soundtrack. It really reminded me of that opening part from Up, except a lot more disturbing, of course. A roller coaster of emotion and suspense condensed down into a bitesize chunk. It's about a young boy getting ready to go to college for the first time, and his mother's subsequent empty nest syndrome.

I liked them all but I really like the first two. The first has a truly repulsive and unique concept, and the second is a burst of escalating chaos condensed into a really tiny time-frame.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by ThirdDrawing »

Marlew wrote: July 25th, 2021, 9:19 pm
Ghostbusters

As brilliant as ever. I picked up the 4K Blu-ray and while it's not a reference disc, it looks great and retains a lovely filmic grain. My wife had never seen it before and she loved the performances, couldn't get over how good the whole cast was. It's full of detail, imagination and affection, a stellar team at the top of their game.
Funny you mentioning Ghostbusters, I'm doing a watchthrough of the first two seasons of The Real Ghostbusters cartoon. Haven't watched them in ages.

I forgot just how good some of the episodes were. JMS (who did Babylon 5) was story editor and a writer on the (I think) first 3 seasons and there are some uniquely dark episodes - especially in the syndicated second season. The writers really feel like they got the characters and a lot of the humour/banter really feels like it could have been in the movies.

I also forgot how good some of the animation looks, being done in Japan, and there's some really stylish anime-style shots in some episodes. Definitely worth a watch if you haven't seen them, and X-Mas Marks the Spot is still one of my favourite Christmas episodes to watch.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Tolkientaters »

Just Watched The Green Knight, it's really good. If you wanna watch a interesting retelling of a medieval morality tale definitely check it out.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Tolkientaters wrote: July 30th, 2021, 4:35 am Just Watched The Green Knight, it's really good. If you wanna watch a interesting retelling of a medieval morality tale definitely check it out.
I've been waiting for this one. I feel like it's been a very long time since I've seen anything with a medieval setting in theaters, and I'm very much looking forward to it.
I'm glad to hear you liked it.
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Angry_Kurt
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Angry_Kurt »

Finished the BBC drama Time. Excellent show but quite disturbing too.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Watched The Suicide Squad, it's fantastic, I think it's the best movie DC put out since The Dark Knight. A lot of silly violent fun, not all of the jokes land, but it's stays fun and has a lot of heart throughout.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Having had it on my watch list since it came out, I finally watched the first season of Castlevania on Netflix. Really enjoyed it and looking forward to watching the other seasons. Helps that it looks so bloody good as well, the art is amazing.

Also, as part of my Marvel Marathon™ I finished season one of Runaways (on Disney+) last night. One of the better live action series, I thought. Interesting premise, and excited to see where it goes next. I've read reports it differs quite a lot from the original comics which some fans were critical of, but having never read this particular series it hasn't bothered me. On to season five of Agents Of Shield next...
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

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Recently I read "The Queen's Gambit" by Walter Tevis and I enjoyed it very much, so I've been watching the Netflix show. It's a lot of fun. I don't like it as much as the book - chess is easier to make interesting in a novel compared to on screen, and the show added a lot of melodramatic plot elements that weren't in the book or needed (the story has enough drama). And they make it all a bit more silly and glamorous than the novel. But the lead actress is gorgeous and I'm o b s e s s e d with everything she wears and her hair and her makeup. Probably the best clothes in a TV drama since "Mad Men" (the gold standard).

And I've argued with a friend about this but I stand by my unpopular opinion: Borgov in the TV version is really attractive! I fancy him.

Apart from that, recently I re-watched "The Death of Stalin" because I hadn't watched it in a while. And I forgot how brilliant it is because I then almost immediately watched it again. That cast is to die for. And (I'll spoiler tag although it does feel a bit odd to do a spoiler warning for... err, history)
Spoiler: show
the Beria execution scene is one of the best on-screen depictions of an execution I've seen
in how underplayed, disturbing, banal etc it is.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Kasuga-san »

Marlew wrote: July 26th, 2021, 9:57 pm
Alex79uk wrote: July 26th, 2021, 9:33 pm
Marlew wrote: July 25th, 2021, 9:19 pm The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
I'll watch it again soon. I've also just seen it's on Netflix UK, apparently.
It doesn't appear to be, but I've earmarked it for a watch if I can find a copy streaming anywhere now or in the future - sounds interesting!
Ah, bugger, sorry about that. Must be Netflix US. I only saw in passing. It's really good. If you see Mind Game around, I believe that's by some of the same people and it's also brilliant. Kind of romantic/erotic but not in a sleazy way. It's just a very expressive and entertaining film that takes you on a wild ride.
Looks like this is on HBO Max in the US. I'll definitely have to check it out. Endless Summer is pretty great. Wish I had some good recent recs right now, but most of what I've been watching is mediocre or things I've already seen that I put on in the background (Transformers: Kingdom, Mr. Show, Space Ghost). The Suicide Squad was a lot better than I expected. If you like Guardians of the Galaxy but felt it needed more nudity and violence, then that is potentially a movie you'll enjoy.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Seph »

Miririn wrote: August 8th, 2021, 11:23 am Apart from that, recently I re-watched "The Death of Stalin" because I hadn't watched it in a while. And I forgot how brilliant it is because I then almost immediately watched it again. That cast is to die for. And (I'll spoiler tag although it does feel a bit odd to do a spoiler warning for... err, history)
Spoiler: show
the Beria execution scene is one of the best on-screen depictions of an execution I've seen
in how underplayed, disturbing, banal etc it is.
Great film and incredible cast, as you mentioned. Much like The Thick of It/In the Loop, it has a form of comedy that's dense with references but has a puerile streak that really hits the mark with someone like me who grew up watching Rik Mayall stuff. I also like how everyone pretty much speaks in their own accent or does a British regional accent, it really adds weight to the comedy. Stalin talking like a London gangster or the military guy (I'm terrible with names) being a gruff northerner not only makes them funnier, but really fits the type of person they are.

I saw the new Resident Evil anime CG thing on Netflix. It opens well, but falls off a cliff very quickly. I really don't understand how they keep messing these up. It would have been better if they made a prequel to Village, much like what that Dead Space animation did. Again, not perfect but at least it slots into the canon better and has a purpose. Or just do your own adaptation like the Castlevania series, which is pretty good.
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